Persil at Kmart NYC/Mixing Detergents

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stricklybojack

stricklybojack

Well-known member
Joined
Feb 24, 2014
Messages
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Location
South Hams Devon UK
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Okay i am now a joiner..on the Persil bandwagon that is.
My question is about detergent coctails, good idea?

I mean this stuff is sorta pricey whereas the A & H was comparatively dirt cheap,
whatdaya say i combine the two?

Another reason would be to dilute the fragrence of the Persil. I am adverse to these perfumes generally and usually try to buy fragrence free detergent.[this post was last edited: 9/10/2015-15:39]

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I had some Era and poured it in Persil. The stench of the Persil was sickening. I don't know if mixing it is a good idea or not. Maybe someone who understands about the chemistry of detergents can tell us.
 
Persil''s fragrance is different

But I have found that it dilutes quickly in a cycle after two rinses. The Intense Fresh is actually less objectionable to me than the Pearls.

After washing a load of sheets and hanging them on the line, the left over smell was very light and clean. Again this is my perception and others may be more sensitive.
 
I think it would be ok to mix Persil with Arm and Hammer if you wanted to save some money. Still a much better idea than just cutting down the recommended dosing of the Persil.
Detergents can be mixed with other laundry additives, so there shouldn`t be a problem if you mix them with another detergent.
Just make sure you mix them every time and only the amount you need for a load of washing.

Don`t mix them in a detergent bottle, because some ingredients of the Arm and Hammer might affect the Persil`s enzymes !
 
I have found if you have detergents that you don't care for the scent of, just add a scoop of oxyclean along with the detergent to the wash and by the end of the cycle all scents are gone. Works for me.

Jon
 
The main distinguishing features of detergents these days is the scent. If you don't like the scent, just vote with your wallet and buy something else.

I don't buy P&G's Ariel anymore over here as they changed the formula and it absolutely wreaks to the point it almost gives me a headache.

Ariel is a sort of weird pine and lemon type scent in the European versions, from what I gather the Latin American Ariel is possibly a totally different product.

Unilever Persil powder here smells rather like baby powder type of a scent. It's an odd one to define.

Persil liquid smells quite sharp/sweet. It's a totally artificial non-floral scent, but it's not unpleasant.
 
If you don't like the scent of a laundry product

Why would you bother purchasing?

Cutting a BOL detergent with a TOL seems counter productive IMHO. Henkel/Dial like Unilever and other makers of laundry detergents not sold as "natural" or whatever use some very powerful fixatives along with perfumes to ensure whatever scent is applied is very long lasting. They justify this apparently based upon consumer testing which told them this is what is wanted.

Being as all this may have found with Tide and Persil along with other highly scented detergents the main trick is to find proper dosage. Just enough to get the job done but not so excessively lavish rinsing becomes difficult.
 
Like Launderess, I think it seems counter-intuitive mixing BOL and TOL detergents. The reason for using a TOL detergent would be the extra cleaning power, and that would presumably get diluted down by mixing it. For me, it makes more sense having a TOL and a cheap detergent available, and using either/or depending on how much cleaning power is needed.
 
Thanks for the thoughts..

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tomorrow AM i will do a pure Persil load to get an idea what it's like, a baseline if you will. I will be using a Wascomat front loader down at the landromat, everything in one load, selecting hot/x long wash/ x rinse as usual.
Now funny thing is with these machines liquid detergents are added on the top into a reservoir which ALWAYS has a good amount of the last patrons detergent in the bottom. So we always get some kinda 'mystery meat' wash soap combo going on.
Also the machine starts with a "pre rinse". Does that mean that water gets drained out before the wash sequence starts? So if i were to add my detergent for example directly to a soon to be washed towel at home -so i didn't have to bother carrying down a container of detergent 4 flights and a block- would this be rinsed out before being used in the wash cycle?
My wife used to do this, and i have changed to bringing a one load container of detergent, based on the fear we were loosing a good amount of the detergent via the "pre rinse".
And really, the enzymes could be killed by A & H? Are they not already swiming in an equally deadly brine of their own...as it were?
 
Cannot say for certain without knowing model number

But both the old Wascomat and new SQ washers at local laundromat drain pre-wash water (but do not spin) before main wash. In fact the pre-wash cycle is so short on the new SQ machines I don't bother putting detergent. Machine fills, tumbles for what seems only a few minutes, then drains.

Keep in mind for most if not all laundromat front-loaders there is nothing to prevent liquid detergents from running down into the machine. Thus even if you put liquid into the main wash compartment it might still "leak" down during first fill. Best to ask the attendant and or observe before dosing.
 
If the machine's only doing a single 'main wash' and no 'pre wash', I would just dose the detergent straight in on top of the clothes.

Over here, I normally use the dosing ball that comes with Persil (Unilever). It's a small flexible plastic (rubbery) dosing device.

You just put it into the machine as you're adding the laundry and it doses.

If you don't have anything like this, just half load the machine, pour in a cap of detergent and load the rest of the laundry.

It won't seep into the sump / drain by the time the machine starts and will mix though the laundry correctly.

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Laundress

I don't know about the rest of you, but I had no idea that Persil smelled like a dead body before I bought it. I poured some Era in there to keep from pouring a whole bottle of Persil down the drain.
 
Ok..

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here are my findings from today's outing, with more than a few pics thrown in for good measure.
The Persil intrestingly enough reminded us of the smell of our sheets after our summer tenant had them laundered at this same establishment, but thankfully not as strong. Probably because any frangrence is different than what were used to. When this place washes a load it is a maximum suds fest. Literally the whole window is solid suds the entire wash cycle.

So I used a 30# machine which was somewhat bigger than necessary but a 20# machine would have been a squeeze. For once the liquid detergent reservoir was empty so our results were untainted.
Given we spend over $6.00 a load just to run the machine paying more for better detergent is money well spent...if the results are indeed better. This was a mixed load of curtains (you would not believe how much NYC airborne particulate matter they fill with), sheets, towels, kids cloths, etc.
And I think the results were indeed better. A new chapter as BOL (cost-wise) detergents like A & H will no longer be the go to for us. Everything looks on balance somewhat brighter, less dingy than before.
And the whites are, you guessed it, whiter.
I like these Wascomats, very solid and quiet. Although the "instructions" leave a lot to be desired. I still am not sure exactly when each of the different dose pathways are to be used and for what. The dryers were Alliance which came in two sizes, small and large. The smaller machines give you more time per quarter but I get better results in the larger ones.
Laundress was right, the machine drains the prerinse water so dosing directly is not recommended.
I did rinse our one use detergent container (vitamin jar) in the incoming prerinse water which is acessible from the top. I also add water and fill the detergent reservoir to the brim. I do this so less is left in the bottom when it empties. Or more specifically what is left is more diluted. Perhaps it finds its way into the load better too.

[this post was last edited: 9/12/2015-17:34]

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The flower thing is for softener.
I is prewash
II is main wash

I can only assume the other one is for pouring in your favourite soda for that extra sticky result ;)
 
Those are the same Wascomats that our local Chinese operated laundry has. The controls are not intuitive at all and not that easy to figure out. Ours charge $3.00 per load and $4.25 for extra hot and extra rinse. I really can't tell if the heat is boosted or not. The glass on the window gets slightly warmed and that's about it.
But they do a good job cleaning our comforters and duvets.
 
Self Heating Washers

Are nil to none in the USA. Cannot find one single vendor of coin operated washers that mentions steam connections for American machines in sales brochures.

Coin Laundromat owners stick to the same rationale domestic washing machines had until recently; why heat water in machine when you can get it from a tank?

Also adding heating introduces other complications such as source (electric is just too expensive in most of the USA and steam would require boilers that could need a special license to operate), along with possible issues with maintenance and so forth.

Good boiler set at proper temperature along with recirculation system should deliver decent enough hot water to a washer. Much will depend if the machines are set to "dumb down" the temp by adding cold water and or pre-wash in cold but do not spin before the main wash. If you do even a short pulse spin between the prewash and main cycle it removes much of the cold water so the incoming hot won't be diluted.

On self heating front loaders the above doesn't matter much because machine is going to raise temps regardless.
 
Vinegar in the rinse also helps

Laundry sours such as white vinegar only are of aid if one laundered with alkaline pH substances such as soap, washing soda, etc... OTOH if one has used neutral to near pH there is less of a clear benefit.

The whole idea of laundry sours is to bring down the often high pH left from laundering processes. That and to combat the residue (mostly sodium bicarbonate) left from using carbonates and other alkaline substances. Bringing down the pH leaves textiles feeling less harsh and removing alkaline residues helps prevent browning and or scorching when laundry comes into contact with heat (dryers and or ironers).

However you have heard me use this word before; encrustation. That is the process whereby hard water minerals, detergents, soaps, soils, etc.. become trapped in textiles when high pH are used for the wash.

All alkaline substances cause natural fibers to swell, this is why chemical processes to change the color and or textile of hair (straighten or curl) often are alkaline. Problem is when it comes to laundry as the rinsing process begins those open "pores" if you will begin to shut down, trapping the aforementioned substances. The solution of using acids (laundry sours) after a series of rinses works well enough, but can damage some textiles and or colors in the long run.

The latest thing is commercial laundries have moved to liquid detergents with their neutral to only slightly alkaline pH. They clean without the brute force of highly alkaline substances thus textile fibers are not forced open. No opening of textile weaves helps deal with the encrustation problem. It also simplifies the laundry chemical profile since you can get rid off some rinses and skip laundry sours.

People often say the clothing feels softer after using a liquid detergent instead of powders. Well it would wouldn't it? Because of the absence of soda and other caustic substances. Liquids also are less aggressive to colors on average than most powdered detergents. In fact for many if using a liquid detergent fabric softeners in general can be skipped.
 
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Laundress, i was using a 30# machine with soil and extra rinse selected, i think the 50# machines here are around the same price you mentioned on the "uptown" machines you are familiar with.

Well today i mixed the two and it still smelled a bit much of the bouquet du Persil for my liking. I should have used less as the load i ran only consisted of our puffy nylon winter coats needing the summers dust accumulation knocked off, with one exception i mention below.

That said i may just dump the smallish Persil into the mega sized Arm & Hammer, and bother to twist the cap and smell what i'm getting into next time. I do like how it cleans, however. My sons jacket is almost fully rid of the nearly permanent staining brought on by his relentless explorations of the undergrowth in our local playground. Calgon take me away!
 
Persil available at Hy-Vee grocery stores: Persil took over an impressive chunk of the detergent aisle at the Hy-Vee in our little village in Minnesota. Several versions are available, but unfortunately, no Proclean 2-in-1. I'll have to ask the manager if that version is available, as it's the only one I'm interested in.

I'm shopping there again tomorrow and will try to figure out which brands / formats were downsized or eliminated in order for Persil to take up so much shelf space.
 
I was...

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Born in Minnesota. We. lived in the Golden Valley suburb of Minneapolis and my family had a cabin in Brainerd. Later we moved to Navarre on Lake Minnetonka, then on to California in 1971.[this post was last edited: 10/3/2015-12:27]
 
I

Just recently tried the Persil pro clean power pearls from Walmart.
Now I'm using TL machine... first issue was sudsing.. during the wash it was a nice one inch layer of suds.. No problem (I thought) but ended up with suds in the rinse water, which required a seconds rinse! Not good here in CA with our drought! The Persil did a very nice job at cleaning.
The biggest problem (for me) was the scent! I hate it, and it sticks to fabric.
Before leaving it on someone's doorstep, or setting on a table in a public laundry mat, I may try to dilute it with a scent free detergent.
So Robert, you might try that. if you have some scent free around, try mixing say one ounce of each, to use as a test run. Mixing two scented detergent may end smelling like a ----------
HTH
 

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